Page 66 of An Alien for the Farm

His voice drops to a near whisper as he continues. “You will be marked. Marked in a way that no other being could ever hope to erase. He will bite, scratch, and hold you with a force you’ve never known. The rut isn’t just about pleasure or mating; it’s about possession. Dominance. It’s a ritual of survival and legacy, deeply ingrained in our species’ core.”

As if realizing the intensity of his words and the complete passion with which he said them, Varek suddenly turns away to face the door. “He locked himself away to protect you. And…there is nothing I can do to help him. If I enter that barn, he will tear me apart.”

I gasp. “You’re his brother.”

“I am male. He will only see a challenge. Competition.”

I release a slow breath, everything he said making me start to pace despite the faint pressure in my skull. I hold on to the bed and make my way around it. His explanation ties everything together. Even the fact he’s wearing a protective suit just so his scent doesn’t get mingled with mine. Protection against his own brother who might now be feral. For minutes, the room fades into silence between us.

“Did this happen because we…” I clear my throat. “Me and Zynar…we…”

“He mated with you.”

I don’t even want to ask how he knows, and so, I simply nod.

“It is deeper than that, kahlesta. It is fate.” He glances at me over his shoulder. “It is a blessing.”

But his words tell me one thing. Varek is mourning his brother because he’s sure this is the end. But it isn’t.

I’ve spent my whole life not doing what I wanted to do, and now it feels like the universe is telling me to go ahead. To finally live. I’m not throwing it away.

“If I don’t accept this bond…” I can see when Varek’s shoulders stiffen. He answers me smoothly anyway.

“Over the next few sols…the rut will consume my siblingkin. The need to claim you will slowly drive him insane. I can only hope his core-beat gives out before then.” He turns to face me then but there is no judgment in his gaze. Instead, there is sad resignation. It hits me then that this male traveled all this way, came here knowing that his brother was in heat, going through something that would drive him to insanity, and yet still he came anyway to protect me from his own blood. He came with the thought that I wouldn’t even consider this bond, and he stayed even when he realized his brother locked himself away and I was safe. He stayed and tended to me even while knowing his brother was slowly dying because of me.

I stare at him, the realization painting him anew in my eyes.

“Even with you rejecting the bond, kahlesta, I am still in honor of having met you.” He bows his head again. “For Zynar to experience this gift—his core-rhythm’s dawning—is a privilege he will count worth his final breath.”

I absorb this silently, processing the sobering implications. Varek pauses, likely reading my turmoil through body language alone.

“How long does this…rut last?” My voice is but a whisper.

“It varies. For some, days. Others, mere hors.” He meets my stare intently. “Why are you asking this, kahlesta?”

A thousand swirling thoughts tangle in my head. Why am I asking? Because I’m actually considering it.

“What if it doesn’t work?” I blurt.

Varek blinks, his gaze heightening on me. For the first time since he arrived, I see a spark of hope in his eyes. He stares at me for a moment as if my words weren’t ones he expected to hear. Frankly, several days ago, they weren’t words I’d have expected to say either. But that was before I came to Hudo III. Before I met Zynar.

“If what doesn’t work?”

“The rut.” I clear my throat, all sorts of images coming into my mind with just that word alone. Images I’ll have to dissect after we settle on this. “What if he goes through the rut and it doesn’t work?”

There’s definite hope in Varek’s eyes now. “You are worried you might not survive.”

I let out a nervous chuckle. “Ha, that too, but I’m really asking about what if he doesn’t come out of this? What if Zynar is still…feral in the end?”

Varek shakes his head immediately, as if that’s something that would never happen. “Your very presence will soothe him. You are all he needs.”

I am all he needs.

Those words make my heart swell as if they’re words I’ve needed to hear for a very long time.

I begin pacing again, rubbing my forehead to ward off the faint twinge of pain still in my head. Zynar didn’t look so calm when he saw me through that crack in the wall. As a matter of fact, he seemed even more feral. I realize now that he was being pushed by the urge to rut.

I can feel Varek’s gaze on me as I pace and when I look at him, he is indeed tracking me with yellow-slitted eyes so much like his brother’s.

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